Sogrape’s Legado: a vertical tasting

Remarkably, given its purity and finesse, Legado (meaning legacy) hails from Quinta do Caêdo, Sogrape’s hottest Portuguese vineyard.

Hotter even than Herdade do Peso in southern Portugal’s Alentejo region, the Douro estate’s south-facing pre-phylloxera terraces – an 8ha natural amphitheatre – bask in the sun.

With impoverished ‘soil’ of decomposed schist mother rock, the old field blend vines planted here over a century ago produce less than half a kilogram of grapes per vine in this crucible of heat and dust. Sometimes they produce just a token bunch.

Scroll down to see tasting notes and scores for six Legado wines and four Casa Ferreirinha wines

Following the acquisition of Quinta do Caêdo in 1990, these staggeringly low yields and the neglected state of the 24ha vineyard informed Sogrape’s decision to replant it.

Company president and CEO, Fernando da Cunha Guedes, winced at the memory of grubbing out pre-phylloxera terraces on the opposite bank of the Ribeira do Caêdo (the small Douro tributary that traverses the estate).

Luckily, when his father (also called Fernando) got wind of the replanting programme in 2005, it was not too late to save the south-facing terraces. Keen to preserve this slice of history, indeed bottle it, the Dijon-trained winemaker recognised the site’s potential to pay a unique tribute to his father, Sogrape’s co-founder, Fernando Van Zeller Guedes.

First release

A trial bottling in 2007 vindicated this decision, as did the opinion of top wine consultant Alberto Antonini who, teaming up with Sogrape’s head winemaker Luís Sottomayor, made the first 2008 release of Legado.

‘Tasting the berries and experiencing the range of flavours from all the different varieties was something I will never forget,’ the Tuscan wine-grower fondly reminisced.

Antonini’s role directing Sogrape’s precision viticulture programme between 2008 and 2012 was immensely important, according to Guedes. Removing lateral shoots and exposing the fruit zone very early in the season (after fruit set) has been key to helping berries adapt to sunlight – their skins thicken, protecting themselves from sunburn.

In stark contrast with Sogrape’s other flagship Douro red, Casa Ferreirinha Barca Velha, Legado is not only the product of a single vineyard, it is also made every year.

Guedes explained: ‘We want to show the style of the year and the character of the grapes from that terroir, changing nothing.’

‘The work is very small; we harvest at the right moment [typically over a fortnight in two or three phases, according to elevation and exposure] and let it age in oak,’ added Sottomayor, a master of understatement.

It is a Sogrape trait. Guedes revealed it was difficult to persuade his father – who he described as a stubborn and unpretentious man – to append his signature to the Legado label. Goodness knows what he thought of the heavyweight bottle. It signals blockbuster, yet Legado has uncommon finesse for a wine from such a sun-drenched Douro site.

With one exception (2009, a hot, dry year), the fruit purity and definition is excellent, as is the freshness. Legado’s ultra-fine tannins shone across the flight. Even in 2009, when the punishing August heat accelerated ripening, ‘the tannins were perfect, with no green’, beamed Sottomayor.

Later vintages (which were aged in 1,200-litre French oak barrels, as opposed to 225-litre barriques prior to 2015) were particularly refined, enhancing broach-ability without sacrificing ageability.

See tasting notes and scores for six Legado wines and four Casa Ferreirinha wines:

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